Sex offender gets jail time for failing to register his address

A local sex offender was sentenced Thursday to 180 days in jail for an address verification violation.

John D. Hunt, 29, most recently of Greenwich, will be in the Huron County Jail for about 53 days because he has been behind bars for nearly 127 days. Huron County Common Pleas Judge Jim Conway placed him on two years of probation, but didn't impose a fine.

Hunt pleaded guilty April 15 to attempted failure to periodically verify his address as a sex offender.

"He has a prior felony of the same type," Huron County Assistant Prosecutor Daivia Kasper told the judge Thursday.

In early June 2011, Hunt pleaded guilty to attempted failure to register as a sex offender. The local conviction is for an incident between September and November of 2010. Hunt was fined $250 as part of his two years of probation.

Hunt last registered his address in September 2011. Kasper said while the defendant had verified his address with in the past 12 months, he didn't do so by the appropriate deadline.

Classified as a sexually-oriented offender for a 1998 Michigan conviction through juvenile court, Hunt's registration requirement expires in 2014. He was about 15 years old when he committed the sex offense.

As of September 2011, Hunt was living in Marion. In February, he changed his address to a South Railroad Street residence in Greenwich.

"He's been homeless off and on for the time I've known him," Huron County Public Defender David Longo said.

Since Hunt has been "drifting" between the homes of family and friends while trying to make ends meet, Longo said those unusual circumstances led to problems with registering his address.

The Huron County Sheriff's Office sent a certified letter to Hunt about his registration requirement Sept. 26, which was refused. Deputies also made several attempts to contact the defendant.

Deputy John Vogel made a traffic stop Jan. 25 involving Hunt on Baseline Road near Plymouth. Deputies said Hunt attempted to flee the scene and was pursued by Vogel, who then arrested him and transported him to jail.